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One of the special needs travel discoveries I made during 2017 was the existence of a travel company and nonprofit in Central Texas focused on serving families that care for a special needs child.

I learned about this incredible resource at an Autism Treatment Forum meeting where the group heard from speaker, Karen S. Duncan, MS, about her nonprofit organization, AWADAE (Adventures with Autism, Down Syndrome and Epilepsy). Ms. Duncan is a certified travel counselor who created AWADAE to help special needs families have the chance to travel together as a family. She arranges trips that pair therapists with families along with any other wraparound resources that a family might need to make their trips run smoothly. Currently, Ms. Duncan is focused on cruises and tours for these adventures.

Recently, I got a chance to sit down with Ms. Duncan for an interview, and I will be sharing more about this important nonprofit in future blogs.

My son is in love with anime, so when a major anime show was coming to Dallas, we knew we had to go. I was worried that downtown Dallas might be too loud or overwhelming for him. Boy, was I wrong. Downtown Dallas is pretty calm, particularly during the weekends when businesses are closed. For some, this might have seemed boring. For us, this was a welcome respite.

We booked a room at the Springhill Marriott (can’t really say I adored it, but it did the job) across the street from the Dallas Aquarium. As we arrived in Dallas on Saturday morning, the lines at the Aquarium were forever (no surprise) by Saturday afternoon. I would not recommend this outing at this peak time for someone with waiting issues, and that describes most people with autism.

My son had no interest in the lines so I took my typically developing daughter and it was still overwhelming and too crowded. So, I cannot give this a Travels With Autism thumbs-up. Perhaps the Aquarium has special days for people with autism, but a regular Saturday is just too crowded.

Our hotel staff (very helpful with recommendations) suggested we visit a gorgeous new science museum–the Perot Museum of Nature and Science— within walking distance of downtown or a short cab ride away.

Even though the Science Museum is very popular, the exhibit halls are spacious and you can find areas that are not too crowded if you want to just hang out in a less popular gallery and chill. That’s what my son and I did. There were lots of exhibits that would appeal to people on the autism spectrum–birds, sports, science, outer space and all very interesting and well displayed. A big thumbs-up for the Perot Science Museum!

My son and I spent most of our time in the bird area, pretending to fly (very cool) and learning about bird sounds. Other galleries were more crowded but we just steered clear of those. I didn’t even need to get out his headphones for this museum. I really cannot say enough nice things about the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. Dallas is lucky to have it!

Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Image from DallasArtsDistrict.org

Also, our hotel staff recommended visiting a really interesting park in Dallas, the Klyde Warren Park, that was built on top of I-35 and opened a few years ago. This unique park features loads of interesting areas to explore for kids and adults. There are food trucks here on the weekends, a restaurant, a water feature for kids, a playground, and there is cultural programming and free performances. It’s another absolute gem in downtown Dallas. It was a welcome surprise for our trip.

For dining, downtown is a little challenging in the area that we were staying in. Luckily we had brought most of our own food as our son is on the gluten-free, dairy-free diet and this constraint makes grabbing food on the go challenging. From our hotel, we were within walking distance of a TGI Friday’s restaurant and there were a few other dining options in the West End area. The Perot Museum also had a really nice cafe and we ate one of our meals there.

I would highly recommend a weekend in Dallas, which honestly, surprises me to write, because you think of downtown areas as too overwhelming for people on the spectrum, but Dallas’ downtown has so many museums, that you can find a weekend’s worth of things to do. I would recommend that you take your own food for dietary needs, and stick to the museums and the parks instead of the Aquarium for a successful sensory trip.

If someone has a recommendation for a good, updated, downtown hotel/extended stay hotel, please write to us in the comments. I looked up hotels and didn’t find one with a pool and a kitchen in the downtown area. So, I’m still looking for just the right “Travels with Autism” downtown Dallas hotel. Happy Travels!

Check out this really well written blog about traveling in a wheelchair. What a great guide. And the layout of the site is just beautiful. Puts my little diary-like blog to shame. But, it gives me something to go for in the future. It also encourages me to get more opinions from my son as he grows up. He was a small boy when I started the blog and not one to have many things to verbally communicate. He’s made more and more strides in the last 5 years that I want to have a he said/she said blog post in the future. I do get his opinion but I’d like his voice to come through more clearly in future blog posts.

As we don’t personally have a lot of problems needing an accessible bathroom on flights, this trend toward using smaller planes without ADA accessible bathrooms is a terrible trend for the special needs community. See this Airlines and disabilities story for the entire discussion of accessible bathrooms on flights.

The new “Luci and Ian Family Garden” is just wonderful. In fact, my son says it’s like “A Village of Wonder!” He could have stayed for a few hours which is really saying a lot because we normally just spend around 30 minutes at most places due to the usual cuprits–crowds, noise, or boredom. While we were there, he was wandering around and exploring and really grooving on the beauty of this new addition to the Wildflower Center. It’s “autism friendly” because there is just so much space to roam and no prescribed way that visitors are expected to interact with the park. This kind of natural setting + open areas = our most successful outings.

Also, as a bonus for the entire family, the Lady Bird Center boasts a restaurant. It’s small and quiet (perfect for keeping sensory overload at bay) and has several gluten-free options. Nothing specifically gluten-free, but there are options, like baked potatoes, salads and chicken dishes. From this limited menu, we were able to cobble together a very healthy meal for our son who is on the gluten-free, dairy-free diet that many kids on the spectrum live on.

On the Autism Friendly scale: Our family gives this family field trip location a BIG thumbs up for beauty, calm, and best of all, wonder.

Air travel can be tricky, for anyone. It’s particularly difficult for children with autism, as the experience is completely out of their control, flights are delayed or worse canceled, and add in the noise and waiting, and you have a recipe for stress. That’s why I’m always a bit nervous when we fly. Not so much that I’m not willing to take big trips, but enough to where I have developed some travel routines when I fly:

I always check with my airlines about bulkhead seating 2 days before departure. This is the time when the airlines are assigning these seats. Bulkhead seats are typically, but not always, reserved for passengers with special needs.

I bring presents on board that are small, but fun, that will keep my children occupied, I give these out every 15 minutes for long flights. I have traveled with 20 presents before.

I introduce myself and my special needs child to the attendant when we board, so that possibly, they will know who we are if I need to request something.

I have a story written with pictures that describes what we are going to do every step of the trip. (Google Carol Gray Social Stories for more information)

I hope for the best and plan for the worst. I have a first aid kit with me for minor health complaints. I don’t want my son crying in mid-flight because I didn’t have a band-aid on me.

We have been flying for years now, and except for one loud yell on a flight about 3 years ago that I think was related to a stomach ache, we’ve made it through hours of flights with no incidence.

Much of this is attributed to our work to prepare for the flights, but also, much of the experience is in the hands of the airline and the other passengers. If they’re helpful, we stay calm, if they’re rigid, we get nervous.

Our most recent flight was with American Airlines and they were absolutely great. We’ve also had good luck with Delta. I always call the airlines ADA number before the trip and list our son as disabled so that when we check in, they’re aware and allow us to pre-board.

I hope all of this information helps you on your next flight. What are some ways that you travel with your children with autism? I’m always looking for new ideas.

As San Antonio is within an hour or so of our house, it is one of our favorite (and easiest) vacation destination. Each summer, if my son has “earned” it, through reaching his behavior goals (don’t tell him, but we arrange it to where he is always able to earn it!) we travel to a close-by hotel for a night away.

La Cantera Resort, San Antonio, photo from Destinations Resorts

This summer, as with last summer, the travel fates smiled upon us and I was able to find a Groupon Coupon for a $149/night room mid-week at this gorgeous resort–La Cantera Resort, San Antonio.

We swam, ate by the pool, took a beautiful nature hike on the hotel’s trails that wind around the golf course (NOTE: These trails are not ADA accessible.), and enjoyed a spa treatment. Yes, you read that correctly. My son requested a spa treatment “for a man” he said. So, we used the WoodHouse Day Spa services that are right on site. They were able to accommodate a child with special needs as long as I was present in the treatment room. My son chose a calming 30-minute hot oil scalp massage ($45). He was in heaven. It seems extravagant, but truly, it calmed him so much that it was worth it. Those of you with autistic kids know that calming their minds and bodies is a big part of the experience of parenting our special children.

We were able to secure a late check-out the next morning and then sadly said goodbye to our 24 hours of bliss at La Cantera. Hasta next summer La Cantera!